Damaged blade came back...

[Nate Webb]

Looking for advice here. I just had my first blade come back to me damaged. I made this knife last year for a guy down in upstate New York. It's 26C3, 62hrc and quite thin at the cutting edge. Customer says it's by far his favorite knife, and uses the bejesus out of it. He says it chipped while he was drawing it through a Wustof pull-through sharpener. I never recommend using those things, but I've never seen one chip a blade before. Did I leave the blade too thin for the hardness, causing the issue? Regardless I'm going to start recommending against using the pull through sharpeners on my knives.

Fortunately I was able to lightly grind the edge back below the chip and resharpen. Seems to still cut quite well, and the tiny bit of extra meat behind the cutting edge should make it just that little bit more rugged in use.

 

[Danke42]

pull-through sharpener

OMG

 

[Rat Finkenstein]

I can't imagine how dragging the edge through could chip it out.

 

[Danke42]

I can't imagine how dragging the edge through could chip it out.

 

[Mick Boardman]

Breaks look pretty clean, seems a side load would cause that break, not a drag thru.

 

[ea42]

I don't see how that could have been caused by a pull through, especially in the middle of the blade. Looks more like a twisting or prying break.

Eric

PS - Oops, looks like everyone said the same thing while I was waylaid before posting. Sorry about the echo lol.

 

[Nate Webb]

I'm trying to give the customer the benefit of the doubt, but you all are echoing my internal thoughts as he was describing the circumstances

 

[Bill DeShivs]

If he didn't pull it straight through, it could have caused the chip.
Or, if he was pulling hard and had a big glob of removed steel clogging the pull through, that could have caused it when the chunk of steel got pulled through.

 

[DevinT]

What was your heat treatment?

Hoss

 

[JTR357]

Breaks look pretty clean, seems a side load would cause that break, not a drag thru.

My thoughts exactly. That's lateral damage.

 

[Nate Webb]

What was your heat treatment?

Hoss

Clayed blade (the hamon was spectacular, I'll attach it just to show off ) 1475 for ten minutes, parks 50 quench, and 375 temper. Looking back at my notes it's 63hrc, not the stated 62.

 

[Stuart Davenport Knives]

IF, and I do mean IF that chip was caused by a pull through sharpener, your client torqued the blade between the two carbide or ceramic rods in the sharpener. No way that happens just by dragging it like intended.

Nice hamon, BTW!

 

[jfk1110]

He twisted it Whilst yanking it thru.......

 

[William Schrade]

He probably chipped it out doing something he shouldn't use a knife for and tried to bring the edge back with the pull through sharpener. I should have been a detective. LOL